In protest of a new state law that allows guns on college campuses, students at the University of Texas in Austin are carrying dildos, the Houston Chronicle reports.
Supported by the hashtag #CocksNotGlocks, the students are protesting S.B. 11, which is commonly referred to as the "campus carry" law. The highly controversial law allows licensed owners to carry concealed handguns on college campuses. The law, which takes effect Aug. 1, 2016, would allow universities to have some discretion over how to regulate it and create possible "gun-free zones" around campus. The law does not apply to private colleges. Supporters say the law would allow students and teachers to defend themselves in the event of a school shooting; opponents believe the law only creates the potential for more violence. According to the Kansas City Star, there have been 52 school shootings in the U.S. in 2015 (including colleges, high schools, and elementary schools).
The law, which already prompted one UT-Austin professor to resign, has not sat well with some students. Jessica Jin, a UT alumni, launched Campus (DILDO) Carry in response to the law. "You're carrying a gun to class?" Jin wrote in the description for the group's Facebook page. "Yeah well I'm carrying a HUGE DILDO."
Jin said a dildo is "[j]ust about as effective at protecting us from sociopathic shooters, but much safer for recreational play." In an interview with the Houston Chronicle, Jin explained why and how she came up with the event.
"I couldn't believe that people could still sit there and defend their own personal gun ownership while watching families mourn the loss of their children," she said. "I felt a lot of frustration at those who were still trying to explain-away, or make excuses for this repeated pattern of violence and said to myself, 'Man, these people are such dildos.'"
Jin ran with the idea and decided to launch the group. "The State of Texas has decided that it is not at all obnoxious to allow deadly concealed weapons in classrooms, however it DOES have strict rules about free sexual expression, to protect your innocence," she said in the group's description. "You would receive a citation for taking a DILDO to class before you would get in trouble for taking a gun to class. Heaven forbid the penis."
Raw Story reports gun rights supporters have been especially brutal in the comments to Jin's page and on other social media outlets. According to the Houston Chronicle, Jin contacted police in Austin after receiving death threats.
"People want me dead for a dildo," she said. "They're incredibly offended! So much outrage! They're calling for my head ... It's the type of reaction that we could only hope to see from them when they hear of a child being gunned down in a classroom."
Jin created a "strap in" event Aug. 24, 2016, the first day of fall classes. So far, more than 3,000 people have confirmed they will attend. Jin said anyone is allowed to participate. More info can be found here.
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